The present invention generally relates to apparatus and methods for metering product from a continuous stream into a product group and/or pack pattern, particularly to metering apparatus and methods not requiring windows between product in the continuous stream, more particularly to metering apparatus and methods which are versatile to meter a wide variety of product such as cans, plastic bottles, jars, cartons, bundles, or trays, and specifically to metering apparatus and methods where product is metered by moving a transfer device from underneath a product group positioned above a sweeping conveyor.
Furthermore, the present invention relates to a metering bar mechanism for registering the leading edge of the product group on the transfer device, with such metering bar mechanism also preventing tipping of tall and/or unstable products. Also, the present invention relates to a sweep bar mechanism for abutting with the trailing edge of the product group moving on a sweep conveyor.
In a typical packaging operation, product comes to a packaging machine in a continuous stream. It is necessary to separate product into groups so that they can be further processed such as being placed into a pack pattern and/or packed into a film overwrap or a corrugated wrap. U.S. Pat. No. 6,843,360 represents one manner of metering product which has enjoyed considerable market success.
However, a need continues to exist for apparatus and methods for metering product which do not suffer from the deficiencies of prior metering apparatus and methods.